THR & Associates founder Jeff Parsons must pay $12.2 million in back overtime wages to former employees after repeatedly ignoring court proceedings and attempting to hide assets, a federal judge in Springfield has ruled.

The default judgment from U.S. District Judge Richard Mills followed an earlier finding by a federal bankruptcy court that Parsons committed fraud by moving, destroying or hiding property.

“Based on plaintiffs' (THR employees) investigation,” Mills said in the decision released last month, “they have reason to believe Parsons is continuing to abscond and hide significant personal assets.”

Mills said Parsons — who now lives in Texas, according to court documents — failed to respond to the original complaint of unpaid wages or to the motion for a default judgment. In addition to $12.2 million in overtime wages, Mills ordered Parsons to pay $120,920 in attorneys' costs.

Two other former THR & Associates executives named in the original complaint, brothers Jason and Mike Delong, have agreed to mediation, according to court documents.

Approximately 150 former employees joined the class-action lawsuit filed in 2012 by Shannon Lee, who worked for THR & Associates in Florida. The lawsuit claimed employees were given “management” titles to circumvent federal requirements of time-and-a-half pay for more than 40 hours a week.

An attorney for the workers said Wednesday the award would be aggressively pursued.

“We know where he (Parsons) is, and we're going to take steps to make sure he pays,” said James Zouras with the law firm of Stephen Zouras in Chicago. ”You don't just blow off the justice system.”

Springfield-based THR & Associates purchased antiques, coins, precious metals and collectibles through a nationwide network of buying events before the company collapsed amid claims of thousands of bad checks written to consumers.

Parsons and THR filed for personal and corporate bankruptcy in September 2012. The bankruptcy judge dismissed the case after finding Parsons attempted to defraud the court by transferring cash to relatives and relocating personal property.